Filing for political office set to begin

The 2013 election season formally gets underway Monday as candidates begin filing to run for seats on school boards, fire districts, city councils and the Snohomish County Council.

In all, 179 offices are up for election in Snohomish County and 72 offices in Island County. Candidate filing in each county, which continues through Friday, can be done in person or online.

This year’s primary is Aug. 6 and the general election is Nov. 5.

And there’s plenty at stake this year.

Three of the five Snohomish County Council seats are on the ballot and new faces will be chosen for two of them because incumbent Councilmen John Koster and Dave Gossett cannot run again due to term limits. The third councilman, Dave Somers, is planning to run for his seat again.

Leadership in several cities could change as voters will be choosing mayors in Everett, Mukilteo, Monroe, Gold Bar, Granite Falls, Index, Lynnwood, Stanwood and Woodway.

In almost every city and town, a majority of council seats are on the ballot as well. There also are seats up for grabs on the boards of school districts, fire districts and the ports of Everett and Edmonds.

In Snohomish County, candidates can file in person at the auditor’s office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. The office is on the first floor of the Administration West Building, 3000 Rockefeller Ave. in Everett.

Online filing begins at 9 a.m. Monday and ends at 4 p.m. Friday. Candidates will need a valid email address and can access the filing at www.snoco.org/elections.

In Island County, candidates can file in person at the auditor’s office from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. The office is located at 400 N. Main St. in Coupeville. Online filing through the county auditor’s website begins at 9 a.m. Monday and ends at 4 p.m. Friday. Candidates can access the filing at http://www.islandcounty.net.